LFP - Large-Format-Printing

Showcard Print boosts its POP business with the installation of the brand-new Inca Onset S50i from Fujifilm

Tuesday 26. November 2013 - Showcard Print, one of the leading UK providers of POP applications for the retail market, is the first European company to install the latest addition to the Inca Onset series, the Inca Onset S50i.

Based in Letchworth, Hertfordshire, Showcard Print is an established print service provider that works with some of the most famous high street brands and fashion retailers. The company boasts a fully equipped production environment comprising offset, screen and digital print machines. A long-standing Fujifilm & Inca customer, Showcard originally installed an Inca Turbo, which was replaced by a more advanced model, the Onset S70, in 2007. When Inca and Fujifilm started the development of the Onset S50i, Showcard Print welcomed the idea of becoming the beta site for this machine.
Kenny Harper, operations director at Showcard Print, explains: “We supply both the national and foreign retail markets with display applications and we have to cope with an increasing number of orders. Most importantly, we need to guarantee a quick delivery and timely response to meet our clients’ requirements.” He continues: “We value the Onset machines highly as they have always given us reliability, quality and productivity. Our most recent investment in digital flatbed technology dated back to six years ago with the purchase of an Onset S70, so we decided that it was time to raise the bar of our production performance and place a new piece of equipment alongside it.”
Kenny goes into more details about Showcard Print’s needs: “Luckily, our business is continuously growing and as we offer a flawless service backed up by excellent production operations technology is the key to us maintaining these high standards.” He clarifies: “When we learnt about the new Onset S50i, we thought that this model would be ideal to satisfy our specific demands and give us extra digital print capacity. We agreed to be the European beta site for the machine to help Fujifilm and Inca with the testing process and support further development,” and adds: “Our first impression was the right one. Following a beta testing period running from May to August 2013, the Onset S50i has been signed off for full production and we’re extremely pleased with the results achieved so far.”
The Inca Onset S50i is a high output flatbed inkjet printer, available with double CMYK colours, that offers a maximum real throughput of 725 m2/hr. The S50i has the intelligent design features of the existing Onset S20i and S40i machines, such as a 15-zone vacuum table, a UV sensor system and mechanical substrate height detectors, which maintain productivity, print quality and reliability. Thanks to its high print speed, the Onset S50i is particularly suitable for companies who have to deal with large volumes of print.
Kenny is also keen to highlight the excellent properties of the ink. “We print on a variety of materials, ranging from paper to fluted board and PVC, and it’s crucial to gain outstanding performance on all of them.” He clarifies: “The Fujifilm Uvijet OZ inks are extremely flexible and enable us to fold, crease and cut different printed media. This is great, as we can now guarantee a high quality production workflow from print to finishing.”
Finally, Kenny is extremely complimentary about the customer service offered by Inca and Fujifilm. He comments: “Not only are Inca’s headquarters local to us and very convenient, but also both Fujifilm and Inca’s rapid reactions to our enquiries are a plus as it means that we can rely on a trustworthy business partner.”
Tudor Morgan, systems marketing manager, Fujifilm Speciality Ink Systems, comments: “Showcard Print is one of the leading UK printers operating in the POP & display industry and we’re delighted that they decided test the Onset S50i and put it into full production. Today there are four S50i installations, including three US-based companies, some of which are existing Onset S70 customers. We’re confident that the features of this model will provide further growth and success for many other users.”